Some unfortunate anniversaries…
1. On the 1-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion, we rightly support Ukraine’s right to defend itself: https://www.thenation.com/.../ukraine-solidarity.../tnamp/. I stand with, or aspire to stand with, with both Ukrainians and Russian dissenters resisting this imperialist aggression: https://static1.squarespace.com/.../220330....
2. We are approaching the 20-year anniversary of the US invasion of Iraq. We should stand with Iraqis still resisting that imperial aggression, and I believe we should repent and make amends for our crimes. For most in the US though, it’s as if the Iraq war did not take place: https://youtu.be/tZhtkzpB6Ac. And btw, we will be naming a new navy warship the USS Fallujah. No repentance or humility yet (https://www.commondreams.org/.../shameful-critics...)
3. We are approaching the 75-year anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba, a catastrophe which continues today. We should stand with Palestinians resisting settler-colonial ethnic cleansing. The US does the opposite, giving $4 billion a year to apartheid and now openly fascist Israel, and it provides moral cover for the continued land grab: https://www.democracynow.org/.../james_cavallaro_state.... Palestinians have a right to defend themselves. Meanwhile here, the nonviolent BDS protest movement is criminalized in many US states, but we should resist regardless: https://bdsmovement.net/
A. It’s been almost 20 years since Israeli bulldozers killed American activist Rachel Corrie. Patti Smith wrote this beautiful song for Rachel: https://youtu.be/KiAKcGPzJU4
4. To put all these together with Ukraine…is this conflation or deflection or “what about-ism”? Does it detract from the Ukrainian cause? I believe the opposite: I believe a humble spirit of asking “What about” demands a consistent ethic—a just foreign policy— that would in turn lend even more credence to our support for Ukraine. A consistent ethic may give us more legitimacy in the international community and make our speeches about defending “freedom “ and “democracy “ less laughable and hypocritical to the global south, who have been on the other end of such “freedom” and “democracy” for generations. https://www.currentaffairs.org/.../is-whataboutism-always...
5. I would love to see a corporate media extend the same sympathy and historical context to other victims, as it does for Ukrainian victims. To see Palestinian (or Western Saharan: https://www.democracynow.org/.../western_sahara_a_rare... ) flags, for instance, flying next to Ukrainian ones. To see the media reflect on its role in selling the Iraq war (https://topdocumentaryfilms.com/weapons-of-mass-deception/) and provide more context/coverage on Afghanistan, not just generate outrage when we were leaving, after 20 years. There are good individual journalists earnestly trying to get us the facts from the ground, but from an institutional perspective, the corporate media ultimately seeks to serve power and manufacture consent: https://chomsky.info/19900907/
6. Such moral consistency might give us more leverage and help us negotiate a just future alongside a rising China (https://www.currentaffairs.org/.../if-we-want-humanity-to...). I’m still trying to figure out wtf Nancy Pelosi was doing in Taiwan btw. In general, I think we need some perspective-taking on China: http://anelegyfortedmcgrath.blogspot.com/.../pivot-to...
7. Finally, for Saint Patrick’s Day, coming very soon…. While Irish-Americans have mostly accommodated themselves to wealth and power in the US, the Emerald Isle/Republic of Ireland itself has been and remains a symbol of anti-imperialism and resistance for centuries. It was such to Frederick Douglass and to Marcus Garvey, to Indians and to Ghanaians, and millions in between. It is to Palestinians today—and we could extend that to Ukrainians.
Peace, love, courage, justice, solidarity!
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